Between the premise and the creative team involved, the new Top Shelf graphic novel Punk’n Heads is immediately on our radar as one of the first must-read graphic novels of 2026. This new book about punk rock and the pitfalls and joys of being young is the latest project from Mary Tyler MooreHawk’s Dave Baker, again reuniting him with Forest Hills Bootleg Society and Everyone is Tulip collaborator Nicole Goux.
Check out the cover art to Punk’n Heads below:
Here’s Top Shelf’s official logline for Punk’n Heads:
In PUNK’N HEADS, Hannah Lipsky isn’t sure what’s happening. She dreamed of becoming a fine art painter, but after breaking up with her girlfriend, she’s suddenly dropped out of art school, moved into a flophouse, and gotten roped into singing in a campy horror-punk band. With costumes. To make things even more complicated, she might be hooking up with her housemate/bandmate/high school crush, Jerry. Whatever, I’m sure it’s fine… Now put on your punk’n mask and let’s rock!
“Punk’n Heads is a book for all the broken hearted losers out there,” said Baker in a statement. “The kids who wanted to accomplish great things and then ended up playing shitty back-room punk shows. If you’ve ever broken up with someone in the back of a van, right before six idiots in Doc Martens are about to pile in, this is the book for you.”
“For anyone whose journey hasn’t been a straight path, Punk’n Heads might just bring you a little solace,” said Goux. “Join Hannah, Jerry, Morgan, and Birdie in their quest to make something cool, make it big, or maybe just be a little less sad.”
Punk’n Heads will be released on April 7, 2026. You can preorder a copy on Amazon.
In other comic book news, find out which series was selected as IGN’s best comic book of 2025, and see which comics we’re most excited for in 2026.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.
